Device and Method for Repairing a Knitted Article

ABSTRACT

The present application describes a device and method for repairing dropped stitches and for correcting errors in previously knitted rows in a knitted article. The knitting repair tool of the present invention comprises a first hook and a second hook at opposite ends of a relatively short elongated shaft for recovering a first stitch and for recovering a second stitch in a knitted article, wherein the second stitch is recovered after the first stitch has been recovered, without releasing the recovered first stitch from the knitting repair tool. The present invention describes various methods for repairing dropped stitches in a knitted article wherein a first dropped stitch that is recovered is not released prior to recovering a second dropped stitch.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No.13/290,424, which further claims the benefit of the priority date ofprovisional patent application Ser. No. 61/412,250 filed Nov. 10, 2010,which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND

A knitted article consists of consecutive rows of loops, calledstitches. Stitches in a row of a knitted article are linked verticallyto stitches above and below each row. As each row is created, a new loopis pulled through an existing loop to link the rows. The active loopsare held on a knitting needle until a new loop is pulled through themand they are linked to the previous row. In knitting, dropping a stitchoccurs when a stitch is inadvertently released from one of the knittingneedles without being properly attached to the next row. A droppedstitch will progress down through the knitted article resulting in aseries of horizontal ladder rungs filling the gap where the stitch wasdropped. In order to repair a dropped stitch in a knitted article it isnecessary to locate the last remaining intact loop of the dropped stitchand properly attach the intact loop to the subsequent row of the knittedarticle thereby recovering the dropped stitch on that row. This processmust be repeated until the dropped stitch is properly attached to eachof the subsequent rows and the stitch that was inadvertently released isplaced back onto the knitting needle.

Various methods are known in the art for repairing a dropped stitch, orother knitting mistake, in a knitted article. One prior art methodutilizes a single device, such as a crochet hook, knitting needle orfinger, to reattach the dropped loop to the subsequent row in theknitted article. However, when using a single device to repair a garterstitch comprising a combination of both knit stitches and purl stitches,after the knit stitch is recovered from the front side of the article,the recovered knit stitch must be released from the crochet hook torecover the next purl stitch from the opposite side of the article.After releasing the recovered knit stitch from the device, recoveringthe purl stitch can be accomplished by either pulling the purl stitchthrough the released knit stitch from the back side of the article or byturning the article over and then pulling the purl stitch through thereleased knit stitch from the front side of the article. With thismethod the stitch must be released between recovering a knit stitch anda purl stitch, which greatly increases the chance that the stitch willbe dropped again. Releasing the knit stitch from the crochet hook,holding onto the loop of the knit stitch and then reinserting thecrochet hook into the loop to repair the purl stitch often results indistortion and uneven stitches in the knitted article. Additionally,turning the article over each time to recover the next stitch greatlyincreases the time necessary to make the repair. Alternatively, twodevices, such as two crochet hooks, a crochet hook and a knittingneedle, etc. could be used to recover the alternating knit and purlstitches by passing the recovered stitch from one device to the otherdevice. With this method it is not necessary to turn the article overeach time to recover the next stitch, but the stitch must be passedbetween the two devices which are placed on opposite sides of thearticle. As such, the recovered stitch must be released from one deviceand transferred to another device to recover the next stitch.Manipulating the two devices simultaneously is difficult to accomplishand transferring the stitch between the two devices often results inanother dropped stitch. Additionally, when passing the stitch from onedevice to the other it is easy to accidentally pick up additional rowsof the knitted article and inadvertently create twisted stitches orother undesirable effects. When utilizing two devices to repair thearticle, the devices must be properly matched to create stitches thatare similarly sized. In addition, even if the two devices aresubstantially similar in size, passing the stitches from one device tothe other inadvertently results in distortion of the stitches as thesize and shape of the stitch are altered during the transfer. Unevenstitches are an undesirable result of utilizing two different devices torepair a knitted article.

Crochet hooks having a hook on both ends are known in the art. Suchdouble-ended crochet hooks are used for two-sided crocheting commonlyreferred to as an Afghan stitch. Double-sided crochet hooks known in theart are commonly ten or fourteen inches in length. In creating an Afghanstitch, the length of the double-ended crochet hook used is necessary toretain the stitches on the hook while crocheting back across thearticle. Double-ended crochet hooks have not been previously used in theart to repair a knitted article. The design of double-ended crochethooks known in the art, having a length of at least ten inches, arecumbersome to handle in attempting to repair a knitted article.Additionally, the necessary length of the double-ended crochet hooksincreases their weight. The additional weight of the hooks makes themawkward for use in the repair of a knitted article. The relatively longlength and relatively heavy weight of the double-ended crochet hooksknown in the art renders such a device impractical and inefficient forthe repair of a knitted article. As such, double-ended crochet hooksknown in the art cannot be reasonably used for repairing a knittedarticle.

There is an unmet need in the art for a device for repairing a droppedstitch in a knitted article that does not require releasing a previouslyrecovered stitch from the device prior to recovering the next stitch.

There is an unmet need in the art for a device for repairing a droppedstitch in a knitted article that does not require rotating the knittedarticle 180° after recovering a first stitch in order to recover thenext stitch.

Thus, there is a need for an improved device and method for efficientlyrepairing a knitted article. In particular, there is a need in the artfor a device and method for repairing a knitted article that does notrequire the use of two independent repair devices or require that thestitch being repaired be released from a repair device to recover thenext stitch to complete the repair. Additionally, there is a need in theart for a device and method for repairing a knitted article that doesnot require turning the knitted article to accomplish the repair.

There is a need in the art for a method of repair that will allow theknitter to follow a complicated pattern and make repairs from the frontside of a knitted fabric keeping the right side of the fabric on the topto follow the pattern and execute the stitches necessary to accomplishthe repair.

SUMMARY

The present application describes a device and method for repairing aknitting mistake in a knitted article. In particular, the presentapplication describes a device and method for repairing dropped stitchesin a knitted article or for making corrections to stitches in previouslyknitted rows. A knitting repair tool for repairing stitches in a knittedarticle is provided which includes a substantially rigid elongated shaftof relatively short length having a substantially circularcross-section. The elongated shaft has a first end and a second end, thefirst end having a first throat tapering to a first hook at the firstend of the shaft and the second end having a second throat tapering to asecond hook at the second end of the shaft. The first hook and thesecond hook are of substantially the same dimension as the circularcross-section of the elongated shaft and the first hook is substantiallyaligned with the second hook, which are facing inwardly toward theshaft.

In a specific embodiment, the elongated shaft of the knitting repairtool is approximately between four inches and five inches in length. Thelength of the elongated shaft of the knitting repair tool is consideredto be of relatively short length. Other lengths of the elongated shaftare within the scope of the present invention wherein the length of theelongated shaft of the knitting repair tool has the advantage of beingdimensioned to perform as a practical and efficient tool for repairing aknitted article.

In a particular embodiment, the throat forming the hook at the each endof the elongated shaft is substantially deeper than required toaccommodate the yarn thickness of the knitted article that is beingrepaired. As such, the throat securely holds the yarn within the hook asthe repair is being performed. If the throat of the knitting repair toolwere not substantially deeper than necessary to accommodate the yarn ofthe knitted article being repaired, the yarn would be easily releasedfrom the hook during the repair and the effectiveness of the knittingrepair tool for its intended purpose would be reduced.

A method of the present invention for repairing a knitted articlecomprising at least two dropped stitches includes, recovering a firstdropped stitch by hooking a bottommost horizontal bar of a first droppedstitch and pulling the bottommost horizontal bar through an intact loopof the knitted article and recovering a second dropped stitch by hookinga next bottommost horizontal bar of a second dropped stitch and pullingthe next bottommost horizontal bar through the first recovered stitch.With this method, the second dropped stitch is recovered withoutreleasing the first recovered stitch.

In a specific embodiment, the knitted article may be rotated 180° afterrecovering the first dropped stitch to recover the second droppedstitch. However, with the method of the present invention it is notnecessary to rotate the knitted article 180° after recovering the firstdropped stitch to recover the second dropped stitch and in a preferredembodiment, the knitted article is not rotated between recovering thefirst dropped stitch and recovering the second dropped stitch.

A method for repairing dropped stitches in a garter stitch knittedarticle includes rotating the knitted article 180° such that thebottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost knit bar. With the knittedarticle in the proper orientation, the method of the present inventionincludes inserting a first hook of an elongated shaft into an intactloop from a front side of the knitted article, positioning the firsthook below the bottommost knit bar and pulling the bottommost knit barthrough the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article,thereby recovering a dropped knit stitch. After the dropped knit stitchhas been recovered, the method further includes sliding the elongatedshaft perpendicular to the knitted article, through the recovered knitstitch, to position the recovered knit stitch proximate to a second hookof the elongated shaft. To recover the dropped purl stitch, the methodincludes positioning the second hook below the bottommost purl bar andpulling the bottommost purl bar through the recovered knit stitch fromthe back side of the knitted article, thereby recovering the droppedpurl stitch. As such, the method of the present invention includesrecovering a dropped knit stitch and recovering a dropped purl stitchwithout releasing the recovered knit stitch and without rotating theknitted article. The method may further include sliding the elongatedshaft perpendicular to the knitted article, through the recovered purlstitch, to position the recovered purl stitch proximate to the firsthook and repeating the method steps until each of the dropped stitcheshave been recovered and the last recovered loop has been placed backonto the knitting needle.

In an additional embodiment, a method for repairing dropped stitches ina garter stitch knitted article includes rotating the knitted article180° such that the bottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost knit bar.With the knitted article in the proper orientation, the method of thepresent invention includes inserting a first hook of an elongated shaftinto the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article, hookingthe bottommost knit bar from above and pulling the bottommost knit barthrough the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article,thereby recovering a dropped knit stitch. After the dropped knit stitchhas been recovered, the method further includes pivoting the elongatedshaft about the recovered knit stitch and sliding the elongated shaftparallel to the knitted article to position the recovered knit stitchproximate to a second hook of the elongated shaft and then sliding theelongated shaft perpendicular to the knitted article, through therecovered knit stitch, to position the recovered knit stitch proximateto the first hook of the elongated shaft. To recover the dropped purlstitch, the method includes positioning the first hook above thebottommost purl bar and pulling the bottommost purl bar through therecovered knit stitch from the back side of the knitted article,pivoting the elongated shaft about the recovered knit stitch and slidingthe elongated shaft parallel to the knitted article to position therecovered purl stitch proximate to the second hook of the elongatedshaft, thereby recovering the dropped purl stitch. As such, the methodof the present invention includes recovering a dropped knit stitch andrecovering a dropped purl stitch without releasing the recovered knitstitch and without rotating the knitted article. The method may furtherinclude sliding the elongated shaft perpendicular to the knitted fabric,through the recovered purl stitch, to position the recovered purl stitchproximate to the first hook and repeating the method steps until each ofthe dropped stitches have been recovered.

In an additional embodiment, a method for repairing dropped stitches ina garter stitch knitted article includes rotating the knitted article180° such that the bottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost knit bar.With the knitted article in the proper orientation, the method of thepresent invention includes inserting a first hook of an elongated shaftinto the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article, hookingthe bottommost knit bar from below and pulling the bottommost knit barthrough the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article,thereby recovering a dropped knit stitch. After the dropped knit stitchhas been recovered, the method further includes sliding the elongatedshaft perpendicular to the knitted article, through the recovered knitstitch, to position the recovered knit stitch proximate to a second hookof the elongated shaft. To recover the dropped purl stitch, the methodincludes positioning the second hook above the bottommost purl bar andpulling the bottommost purl bar through the recovered knit stitch from aback side of the knitted article, pivoting the elongated shaft about therecovered knit stitch and sliding the elongated shaft parallel to theknitted article to position the recovered purl stitch proximate to thefirst hook of the elongated shaft, thereby recovering the dropped purlstitch. As such, the method of the present invention includes recoveringa dropped knit stitch and recovering a dropped purl stitch withoutreleasing the recovered knit stitch and without rotating the knittedarticle. The method may further include sliding the elongated shaftperpendicular to the knitted article, through the recovered purl stitch,to position the recovered purl stitch proximate to the second hook andrepeating the method steps until each of the dropped stitches have beenrecovered.

In an additional embodiment, a method for repairing dropped stitches ina garter stitch knitted article includes rotating the knitted article180° such that the bottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost knit bar.With the knitted article in the proper orientation, the method of thepresent invention includes inserting a first hook of an elongated shaftinto the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article, hookingthe bottommost knit bar from above and pulling the bottommost knit barthrough the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article,pivoting the elongated shaft about the recovered knit stitch and slidingthe elongated shaft parallel to the knitted article, through therecovered knit stitch, to position the recovered knit stitch proximateto a second hook of the elongated shaft, thereby recovering a droppedknit stitch. After the dropped knit stitch has been recovered, themethod further includes sliding the elongated shaft perpendicular to theknitted article, through the recovered knit stitch, to position therecovered knit stitch proximate to the first hook of the elongatedshaft. To recover the dropped purl stitch, the method includespositioning the first hook below the bottommost purl bar and pulling thebottommost purl bar through the recovered knit stitch from a back sideof the knitted article, thereby recovering the dropped purl stitch. Assuch, the method of the present invention includes recovering a droppedknit stitch and recovering a dropped purl stitch without releasing therecovered knit stitch and without rotating the knitted article. Themethod may further include sliding the elongated shaft perpendicular tothe knitted article, through the recovered purl stitch, to position therecovered purl stitch proximate to the second hook and repeating themethod steps until each of the dropped stitches have been recovered.

In an additional embodiment, the knitted article is a seed stitchknitted article and the method for repairing the dropped stitchesincludes, rotating the knitted article 180° such that the bottommosthorizontal bar is a bottommost knit bar and the next bottommosthorizontal bar is a bottommost purl bar if the bottommost horizontal baris a bottommost purl bar. With the knitted article in the properorientation, the method of the present invention includes inserting afirst hook of an elongated shaft into the intact loop from a front sideof the knitted article, sliding the elongated shaft perpendicular to theknitted fabric, through the intact loop, to position the intact loopproximate to a second hook of the elongated shaft, positioning thesecond hook of the elongated shaft above the bottommost knit bar andhooking the bottommost knit bar with the second hook from above andpulling the bottommost knit bar through the intact loop from a back sideof the knitted article with the second hook, thereby recovering thedropped knit stitch. After the dropped knit stitch has been recovered,the method further includes pivoting the elongated shaft about therecovered knit stitch and sliding the elongated shaft parallel to theknitted article, through the recovered knit stitch, to position therecovered knit stitch proximate to the first hook of the elongatedshaft. The method further includes, sliding the elongated shaftperpendicular to the knitted article, through the recovered knit stitch,to position the recovered knit stitch proximate to the second hook ofthe elongated shaft, positioning the second hook of the elongated shaftbelow the bottommost purl bar and hooking the bottommost purl bar withthe second hook from below and pulling the bottommost purl bar throughthe recovered knit stitch from a front side of the knitted article withthe second hook, thereby recovering the dropped purl stitch. The methodmay further include, sliding the elongated shaft perpendicular to theknitted article, through the recovered purl stitch, to position therecovered purl stitch proximate to the first hook of the elongated shaftand repeating the method until each of the dropped stitches in theknitted article are repaired.

In another embodiment, the knitted article is a seed stitch knittedarticle and the method for repairing the dropped stitches includes,rotating the knitted article 180° such that the bottommost horizontalbar is a bottommost knit bar and the next bottommost horizontal bar is abottommost purl bar if the bottommost horizontal bar is a bottommostpurl bar. With the knitted article in the proper orientation, the methodof the present invention includes inserting a first hook of an elongatedshaft into the intact loop from a front side of the knitted article,sliding the elongated shaft perpendicular to the knitted fabric, throughthe intact loop, to position the intact loop proximate to a second hookof the elongated shaft, positioning the second hook of the elongatedshaft above the bottommost knit bar and hooking the bottommost knit barwith the second hook from above, pulling the bottommost knit bar throughthe intact loop from a back side of the knitted article with the secondhook, pivoting the elongated shaft about the recovered knit stitch andsliding the elongated shaft parallel to the knitted article, through therecovered knit stitch, to position the recovered knit stitch proximateto the first hook of the elongated shaft, thereby recovering the droppedknit stitch. After the dropped knit stitch has been recovered, themethod further includes, sliding the elongated shaft perpendicular tothe knitted article, through the recovered knit stitch, to position therecovered knit stitch proximate to the second hook of the elongatedshaft, positioning the second hook of the elongated shaft above thebottommost purl bar and hooking the bottommost purl bar with the secondhook from above, pulling the bottommost purl bar through the recoveredknit stitch from a front side of the knitted article with the secondhook, pivoting the elongated shaft about the recovered knit stitch andsliding the elongated shaft parallel to the knitted article, through therecovered purl stitch, to position the recovered purl stitch proximateto the first hook of the elongated shaft, thereby recovering the droppedpurl stitch. The method may further include, sliding the elongated shaftperpendicular to the knitted article, through the recovered purl stitch,to position the recovered purl stitch proximate to the second hook ofthe elongated shaft and repeating the method until each of the droppedstitches in the knitted article are repaired.

In an additional embodiment, the knitted article is a garter stitchknitted article and recovering the knit stitch and recovering the purlstitch are both performed from the front side of the knitted article.The method includes rotating the knitted article 180° such that thebottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost knit bar and the nextbottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost purl bar if the bottommosthorizontal bar is a bottommost purl bar. With the knitted article in theproper orientation, the method of the present invention includesinserting a first hook of an elongated shaft into the intact loop from afront side of the knitted article, positioning the first hook below thebottommost knit bar and hooking the bottommost knit bar with the firsthook from below, pulling the bottommost knit bar through the intact loopfrom a front side of the knitted article with the first hook, therebyrecovering the dropped knit stitch. After the dropped knit stitch hasbeen recovered, the method continues by sliding the elongated shaftparallel to the knitted article and behind the bottommost purl bar toposition the recovered knit stitch proximate to a second hook of theelongated shaft, hooking the recovered knit stitch with the second hookof the elongated shaft, pulling the recovered knit stitch behind thebottommost purl bar to position the recovered knit stitch and the secondhook of the elongated shaft above the bottommost purl bar, rotating theelongated shaft to position the second hook to face downward and hookingthe bottommost purl bar with the second hook from above and pulling thebottommost purl bar through the recovered knit stitch from the frontside of the knitted article with the second hook, thereby recovering thedropped purl stitch.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A-1B are diagrams illustrating the knitting repair tool inaccordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2A-2D illustrates a method for repairing dropped stitches in aknitted article in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 3A-3F illustrates an additional method for repairing droppedstitches in a knitted article in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 4A-4E illustrates an additional method for repairing droppedstitches from the front side of a knitted article in accordance with thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Those of ordinary skill in the art will realize that the followingdetailed description of embodiments in this specification isillustrative only, and is not intended to be in any way limiting. Otherembodiments will readily suggest themselves to such skilled personshaving the benefit of this disclosure. It will be apparent to oneskilled in the art that these specific details may not be required topractice the embodiments. In the following description of theembodiments, substantially the same parts are denoted by the samereference numerals.

Numerous stitches are known in the art for creating a knitted article.Creating a knitted article using a knit stitch, or a garter stitch,requires performing a knitted row on a front side of the knittedarticle, turning the knitted article over to make the back side thefront side, and completing the next knitted row across the front side ofthe knitted article. As such, when a knitted article is created using agarter stitch, the knitted rows alternate on opposite sides of thefabric. In a knitted article created using a garter stitch, the knittedarticle is said to include a knit side and a purl side. The purl side isreferred to as the back of the knit side and when knitting the fabricusing a garter stitch, alternating rows of knits and purls are createdon each side of the knitted article. When viewing the knitted articlefrom one side, the stitches that protrude from the knitted article arethe purl stitches and the recessed stitches are the knit stitches. Whenit is necessary to repair or change the stitches in such a knittedarticle, the dropped knit stitches are pulled through from the frontside of the knitted article and the dropped purl stitches are pulledthrough from the back side of the knitted article. Similarly, a knittedarticle created using a seed stitch has a knitting pattern thatalternates between knit stitches and purl stitches. With a seed stitch,once the initial row of stitches is complete, on the next and subsequentrows, each of the knit stitches is purled and each of the purl stitchesis knitted. As such, in repairing a dropped stitch in a seed stitch, thedropped knit stitches are pulled through from the back side of theknitted article and the dropped purl stitches are pulled through fromthe front side of the knitted article.

A device for repairing dropped stitches in a knitted article isillustrated with reference to FIG. 1. The knitting repair tool 10 ofFIG. 1 includes a substantially rigid elongated shaft 15 of relativelyshort length having a substantially circular cross-section 30. Theelongated shaft 15 has a first end and a second end, wherein the firstend has a first throat 20 tapering to a first hook 25 and the second endhas a second throat 20′ tapering to a second hook 25′. The first hook 25and the second hook 25′ are of substantially the same dimension as thecircular cross-section 30 of the elongated shaft 15 and the first hook25 is substantially aligned with the second hook 25′, with the hooksfacing inwardly toward the shaft 15.

Having a first hook 25 and a second hook 25′ positioned at opposite endsof the elongated shaft 15 allows a user to repair a first dropped stitchof a series of dropped stitches in a knitted article and to repair asecond dropped stitch in the series of dropped stitches, without needingto remove the first repaired stitch from the knitting repair tool 10 inorder to repair the second stitch. As such, the possibility of droppinga stitch when repairing a series of dropped stitches in the knittedarticle is greatly reduced.

In addition, having a first hook 25 and a second hook 25′ positioned atopposite ends of the elongated shaft 15 allows a user to repair a firstdropped stitch of a series of dropped stitches in a knitted article andto repair a second dropped stitch in the series of dropped stitches,without needing to rotate the knitted article 180° in order to repairthe second stitch. As such, dropped stitches originating on both thefront side and the back side of the knitted article can be efficientlyrepaired with the knitting repair tool without rotating the knittedarticle.

Additionally, having a first hook 25 and a second hook 25′ positioned atopposite ends of the elongated shaft 15 and having the two hooks alignedwith each other and facing inward toward the elongated shaft 15 allows auser to repair a first dropped stitch of a series of dropped stitches ina knitted article and to repair a second dropped stitch in the series ofdropped stitches, without inadvertently twisting the first repairedstitch. If the hooks were not aligned, and as such were faced towardsopposite sides of the elongated shaft 15, the first repaired stitchwould need to be released from the elongated shaft 15 in order to avoidtwisting the thread when repairing the second dropped stitch.

Having a first hook 25 and a second hook 25′ positioned at opposite endsof the elongated shaft 15, wherein the two hooks are of substantiallythe same size allows a user to repair a first dropped stitch in a seriesof dropped stitches in a knitted article and to repair a second droppedstitch in the series of dropped stitches, wherein the stitches will besubstantially the same size. Because the size of the hooks affects thesize of the recovered stitches, if the hooks were not substantially thesame size, the first recovered stitch and the second recovered stitchmay not be similarly sized after the repair is made, which is anundesirable result in the knitted article.

To facilitate the repair of the dropped stitches in the knitted article,the knitting repair tool is designed to be relatively short in length.In a specific embodiment, the length of the elongated shaft 15 isapproximately between four inches and five inches. The relatively shortlength of the elongated shaft 15 allows a user to quickly andefficiently repair dropped stitches in a knitted article. The relativelyshort length of the elongated shaft 15 allows a user to comfortablymanipulate the dropped stitches originating from either a front side ora back side of the knitted article while working from the front side ofthe knitted article. In contrast, a tool having an elongated shaft of arelatively long length, such as ten inches or more, would be difficultto manage when repairing dropped stitches in a knitted article. Thedesign of the elongated shaft 15 being relatively short in length in anadvantage of the knitting repair tool of the present invention.

The elongated shaft 15 may be substantially evenly dimensioned andsubstantially smooth over its length, thereby allowing the elongatedshaft 15 of the knitting repair tool 10 to slide easily through the yarnof the knitted fabric.

A first throat 20 and a second throat 20′ of the elongated shaft 15 ofthe knitting repair tool 10 may have has a depth substantially greaterthan a yarn thickness of the knitted article that is being repaired. Assuch, the throats 20, 20′ securely hold the yarn within the hooks 25,25′ as the repair is being performed. If the throats 20, 20′ of theknitting repair tool were not substantially deeper than necessary toaccommodate the yarn of the knitted article being repaired, the yarnwould be easily released from the hooks 25, 25′ during the repair andthe effectiveness of the knitting repair tool 10 for its intendedpurpose would be reduced.

In accordance with the present invention, a method for repairing droppedstitches in a knitted article includes, recovering a first droppedstitch by hooking a bottommost horizontal bar of a first dropped stitchand pulling the bottommost horizontal bar through an intact loop of theknitted article and recovering a second dropped stitch by hooking a nextbottommost horizontal bar of the second dropped stitch and pulling thenext bottommost horizontal bar through the first recovered stitch,wherein recovering the second dropped stitch is performed withoutreleasing the first dropped stitch. This method can be repeated untilall of the dropped stitches in the knitted article have been repaired.

The knitted article may be rotated 180° after recovering the firstdropped stitch and before recovering the second dropped stitch, howeverit is not necessary to rotate the knitted article to recover the seconddropped stitch after the first dropped stitch has been recovered.

With reference to FIG. 2A-2D, a method for repairing dropped stitches ina garter stitch knitted article 50 is illustrated wherein the droppedstitches include at least one dropped knit stitch 60 and at least onedropped purl stitch 65. To establish a common orientation for the repairof the knitted article 50, if the bottommost horizontal bar in theknitted article 50 is a purl bar, the knitted article 50 is rotated 180°so that the bottommost horizontal bar in the knitted article is a knitbar and as such, the bottommost horizontal bar is on a back side of theknitted article being repaired 50.

As shown in FIG. 2A, a first hook 25 of an elongated shaft 15 isinserted into an intact loop 70 from a front side of the knitted article50. The intact loop 70 is the last complete loop in the column ofdropped stitches. The first hook 25 is then positioned below thebottommost knit bar 60 and the first hook 25 is then used to hook thebottommost knit bar 60 from below. As shown in FIG. 2B, the bottommostknit bar 60 is then pulled through the intact loop 70 from the frontside of the knitted article 70, thereby recovering the dropped knitstitch 60. As shown with reference to FIG. 2C, after the dropped knitstitch 60 has been recovered, the elongated shaft 15 is slidperpendicular to the knitted article 50 to position the recovered knitstitch 60 proximate to a second hook 25′ of the elongated shaft 15. Asshown in FIG. 2D, the second hook 25′ is then positioned below thebottommost dropped purl bar 65 and the second hook 25′ is then used tohook the bottommost purl bar 65 from below. The bottommost purl bar 65is then pulled through the recovered knit stitch 60 from the back sideof the knitted article 50, thereby recovering the dropped purl stitch65. To repair additional stitches, the elongated shaft 15 may then beslid perpendicular to the knitted article 50 to position the recoveredpurl stitch 65 proximate to the first hook 25 and the method can berepeated by hooking the next dropped knit bar with the first hook 25.

The method illustrated in FIG. 2A-2D is referred to as a “below the bar”method for repairing a garter stitch because the hooks at each end ofthe elongated shaft are used to hook the knit bar and the purl bar frombelow.

An additional embodiment, illustrated in FIG. 3A-3F, is referred to asan “above the bar” method for repairing a garter stitch because thehooks at each end of the elongated shaft are used to hook the knit barand the purl bar from above.

With reference to FIG. 3A, a first hook 25 of the elongated shaft 15 isinserted into the intact loop 70 from a front side of the knittedarticle. As shown in FIG. 3A, a first hook 25 of an elongated shaft 15is inserted into an intact loop 70 from a front side of the knittedarticle 50. The intact loop 70 is the last complete loop in the columnof dropped stitches. The first hook 25 is then positioned below theabove most knit bar 60 and the first hook 25 is then used to hook thebottommost knit bar 60 from above. As shown in FIG. 3B, the bottommostknit bar 60 is then pulled through the intact loop 70 from the frontside of the knitted article 50, thereby recovering the dropped knitstitch 60. As shown with reference to FIG. 3C, after the dropped knitstitch 60 has been recovered, to avoid twisting the recovered knitstitch 60, the elongated shaft is first pivoted 180° about the recoveredknit stitch 60 to position the first hook 25 facing outwardly from theknitted fabric 50 and then the elongated shaft 15 is slid parallel tothe knitted article 50, through the recovered knit stitch 60, toposition the recovered knit stitch 60 proximate to a second hook 25′ ofthe elongated shaft 15, as shown in FIG. 3D. As shown in FIG. 3E, theelongated shaft 15 is then slid perpendicular to the knitted article 50to position the recovered knit stitch 60 proximate to the first hook 25of the elongated shaft 15. The first hook 25 is then positioned abovethe bottommost dropped purl bar 65 and the first hook 25 is then used tohook the bottommost purl bar 65 from above, as shown in FIG. 3F. Thebottommost purl bar 65 is then pulled through the recovered knit stitch60 from the back side of the knitted article 50, thereby recovering thedropped purl stitch 65. In order to repair additional stitches after thedropped purl stitch 65 has been recovered and to avoid twisting therecovered purl stitch 65, the elongated shaft 15 is first pivoted 180°about the recovered purl stitch 65 to position the first hook facingoutwardly from the knitted fabric 50 and then the elongated shaft 15 isslid parallel to the knitted article 50, through the recovered purlstitch 65 to position the recovered purl stitch 65 proximate to thesecond hook 25′ of the elongated shaft 15. The elongated shaft may thenbe slid perpendicular to the knitted article 50 to position therecovered purl stitch 65 proximate to the first hook 25 and the methodcan be repeated by hooking the next dropped knit bar with the first hook25.

In additional embodiments, the “under the bar” method illustrated inFIG. 2A-2D may be combined with the “over the bar” method illustrated inFIG. 3A-3F. In one embodiment, the “under the bar” method may be used torecover a dropped knit stitch and the “over the bar” method may then beused to recover a dropped purl stitch. In another embodiment, the “overthe bar” method may be used to recover a dropped knit stitch and the“under the bar” method may then be used to recover a dropped purlstitch.

In an additional embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4A-4E, a garter stitchcomprising knit bars and purl bars may be repaired entirely from thefront side of the article. In this embodiment

With reference to FIG. 4A, the knitted article 50 is rotated 180° suchthat the bottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost knit bar and the nextbottommost horizontal bar is a bottommost purl bar if the bottommosthorizontal bar is a bottommost purl bar and then a first hook 25 of anelongated shaft 15 is inserted into the intact loop 70 from a front sideof the knitted article 50. The intact loop 70 is the last complete loopin the column of dropped stitches. The first hook 25 is then positionedbelow the bottommost knit bar 60 and the first hook 25 is then used tohook the bottommost knit bar 60 from below. As shown in FIG. 4B, thebottommost knit bar 60 is then pulled through the intact loop 70 fromthe front side of the knitted article 50, thereby recovering the droppedknit stitch 60. As shown with reference to FIG. 4C, after the droppedknit stitch 60 has been recovered, the elongated shaft 15 is slidparallel to the knitted article 50 and behind the bottommost purl bar 65to position the recovered knit stitch 60 proximate to the second hook25′ of the elongated shaft 15. The second hook 25′ is then used to hookthe recovered knit stitch 60 and to pull the recovered knit stitch 60behind the bottommost purl bar 65 to position the recovered knit stitch60 and the second hook 25′ above the bottommost purl bar 65. Theelongated shaft 15 is then rotated to position the second hook 25′ toface downward and then the second hook 25′ is used to hook thebottommost purl bar 65 from above, as shown in FIG. 4D. The second hook25′ is then used to pull the bottommost purl bar 65 through therecovered knit stitch 60 from the front side of the knitted article 50,thereby recovering the dropped purl stitch 65, as shown in FIG. 4E. Assuch, in this embodiment, the knit stitch 60 and the purl stitch 65 areboth recovered from the front side of the knitted article 50. Theelongated shaft 15 may then be pivoted about the recovered purl stitch65 to position the recovered purl stitch proximate to the second hook25′ of the elongated shaft and to position the second hook 25′ to faceupward and the method can be repeated by hooking the next dropped knitbar with the second hook 25′ and repeating the method until each of thedropped stitches in the knitted article 50 are repaired.

In a seed stitched knitted article, dropped stitches are recovered byknitting the purl bars and purling the knit bars. As such, in a methodto repair dropped stitches in a seed stitched knitted article 50, theknitted article 50 is positioned such that the bottommost horizontal baris a knit bar. After the orientation of the knitted article 50 isestablished, a first hook 25 of the elongated shaft 15 is inserted intothe intact loop 70 from a front side of the knitted article 50. In orderto purl the bottommost dropped knit bar 60, the elongated shaft 15 isslid perpendicular to the knitted fabric, through the intact loop 70 toposition a second hook 25′ of the elongated shaft 15 proximate to theintact loop 70. The second hook 25′ may then be positioned either aboveor below the bottommost dropped knit bar 60. With the second hook 25′positioned below the bottommost dropped knit bar 60, the second hook 25′is used to hook the bottommost knit bar 60 from below and to pull thebottommost knit bar 60 through the intact loop 70 from the back side ofthe knitted article 50. With the second hook 25′ positioned above thebottom most dropped knit bar 60, the second hook 25′ is used to hook thebottommost knit bar 60 from above and to pull the bottommost knit bar 60through the intact loop 70 from the back side of the knitted article 50.If the bottommost knit bar 60 is hooked from above, in order to avoidtwisting the recovered knit stitch 60 before recovering the next purlstitch, the elongated shaft 15 is pivoted about the recovered knitstitch 60 and the elongated shaft 15 is slid parallel to the knittedfabric 50 to position the recovered knit bar 60 proximate to the firsthook 25 of the elongated shaft. After the knit stitch 60 of the seedstitch has been recovered, the elongated shaft 15 is slid perpendicularto the knitted article 50 to position the recovered knit bar 60proximate the second hook 25′ of the elongated shaft 15. The bottommostpurl bar 65 may then be hooked from below with the second hook 25′ andpulled through the recovered knit bar 60 from the front side of theknitted article 50, thereby recovering the dropped purl stitch 65. In anadditional embodiment, the bottommost purl bar 65 may be hooked fromabove with the second hook 25′ and pulled through the recovered knit bar60 from the front side of the knitted article 50 to recover the droppedpurl stitch 65. With this embodiment, to avoid twisting the recoveredpurl stitch 65, the elongated shaft 15 would need to be pivoted and slidparallel to the knitted fabric 50 prior to recovering the next knitstitch.

In addition to repairing dropped stitches in a knitted article, it iswithin the scope of the present invention to use the knitting repairtool to repair other knitting mistakes within a knitted fabric. In anexemplary embodiment, the knitting repair tool may be used to change astitch to a knit stitch that was mistakenly knitted as a purl stitch.Additionally, methods similar to those disclosed may be used to repairvarious knitting mistakes within a knitted article in addition torepairing dropped stitches. The methods disclosed may be used to changea purl stitch to a knit stitch within the knitted article.

The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of have beenpresented for purposes of illustration and description. They are notintended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise formsdisclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possiblein light of the above teaching. The embodiments were chosen anddescribed in order to best explain the principles and practicalapplications, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to bestutilize the various embodiments with various modifications as are suitedto the particular use contemplated. It is intended that the scope bedefined by the claims appended hereto and their equivalents.

1. A knitting repair tool comprising a substantially rigid elongatedshaft of relatively short length having a substantially circularcross-section, the elongated shaft having a first end and a second end,the first end having a first throat tapering to a first hook at thefirst end of the shaft and the second end having a second throattapering to a second hook at the second end of the shaft, the first hookand the second hook being of substantially the same dimension as thecircular cross-section of the elongated shaft and the first hooksubstantially aligned with the second hook facing inwardly toward theshaft.
 2. The knitting repair tool of claim 1, wherein the length of theelongated shaft is approximately between four inches and five inches. 3.The knitting repair tool of claim 1, wherein the elongated shaft issubstantially evenly dimensioned and substantially smooth over itslength.
 4. The knitting repair tool of claim 1, wherein the first throatof the elongated shaft has a depth substantially greater than a yarnthickness of the knitted article that is being repaired.
 5. The knittingrepair tool of claim 1, wherein the second throat of the elongated shafthas a depth substantially greater than a yarn thickness of the knittedarticle that is being repaired.
 6. A knitting repair tool comprising asubstantially rigid elongated shaft approximately between four inchesand five inches in length and having a substantially circularcross-section, the elongated shaft is substantially evenly dimensionedand substantially smooth over its length, the elongated shaft having afirst end and a second end, the first end having a first throat taperingto a first hook at the first end of the shaft the first throat of theelongated shaft having a depth substantially greater than a yarnthickness of the knitted article that is being repaired, and the secondend having a second throat tapering to a second hook at the second endof the shaft, the second throat of the elongated shaft having a depthsubstantially greater than a yarn thickness of the knitted article thatis being repaired, the first hook and the second hook being ofsubstantially the same dimension as the circular cross-section of theelongated shaft and the first hook substantially aligned with the secondhook facing inwardly toward the shaft.